1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to flexible containers used for storing and disseminating powdered materials, and, more particularly, to apparatus for disseminating powdered materials by a squeeze action on the container which causes air to be mixed with the powdered material and thus forced out of the container through an orifice or the like.
2. Description of the Prior Art
U.S. Pat. No. 2,515,193 discloses a powder sprayer which comprises a rubber bulb which holds the powder and a nozzle member which has a tubular portion extending downwardly into the bulb. There is a hole at the bottom of the tubular member and the powder flows through the hole, upwardly in the tubular member, and into a nozzle which has a larger diameter than the bore of the tube. The nozzle includes orifices through which the powder is sprayed out of the apparatus.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,896,825 discloses another type of dispensing apparatus. A tubular member having a plurality of holes extending through the tubular member is disposed within a deformable container. The tubular member communicates directly with a nozzle dispenser.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,981,444 discloses another type of squeezable container for dispensing powder. A feed tube is dispensed downwardly from a dispenser cap into the center of a deformable cylindrical container. The feed tube includes a plurality of holes through which the powder flows into the tube. From within the tube, the powder flows upwardly to a mixing chamber and out of the apparatus to the dispensing cap.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,263,873 discloses another type of spray dispensing apparatus in which a tubular member extends downwardly into a deformable container. The tubular member is offset from the center of the apparatus and communicates with a dispensing nozzle on the top of the container. Different sized apertures in the top dispenser can be aligned with the tube for dispensing different types of sprays or sprays of varying intensity.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,306,499, the inventor of which is the same as for the present application, describes apparatus for distributing powder from a squeezable container. Such apparatus is used for distributing powdered insecticides, such as diatomaceous earth, and the like. The purpose of the powdered material is to prevent insecticides from destroying plants. Since insects attack various parts of the plant, the powdered insecticide must be sprayed in various orientations of the container, up, down, sideways, (horizontal), etc.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,015,753 discloses another type of powder spray control apparatus which also uses a tube extending downwardly from the upper portion of a container. The tube communicates with a mixing chamber which is disposed between the top or upper portion of the tube and an orifice or discharge port. The powder flows upwardly in the tube and is mixed with air in the mixing chamber before being sprayed out of the apparatus.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,261,488 discloses another type of dispenser apparatus which includes the same type of mixing chamber and tube as disclosed in the '753 patent, but the feed of the powder to the tube is different than the '488 patent. A cup is disposed on the bottom of the tube, and powder flows into the cup and from the cup into the tube. The powder then rises in the tube, flows into the mixing chamber and then out of the apparatus. The cup also has a hole or bore at the bottom of the cup to facilitate the air and powder mixture flowing upwardly in the tube from the cup.
Since the powdered insecticide is generally very finely granulated material, in powder form, air must appropriately be mixed with the material to propel the material out of a container and onto the desired plant or plants, or wherever it is deemed advisable to spray the material. It is highly desirable to provide an even layer of material on the plant and accordingly the apparatus which distributes the powdered material must spray a uniform concentration of the material out of the container.
The '499 patent mentioned above performs most of the functions which are desirable through apparatus of this kind, as discussed in the preceding paragraph. The '499 apparatus includes a particular cap which has a swivel nozzle movable from an off-position to an on-position. In the on-position, the nozzle includes a bore which is aligned with a mixing plug and squeezing action of the container causes air and powder to mix and then to move out of the container through the aligned and open bore. A limitation of the '499 apparatus is that a limited amount of air and powdered material is disseminated from the container in virtually an unvarying or unchangeable quantity. Moreover, the cost of the swivel type cap is relatively expensive.
Insecticides, which may primarily be used for plants in gardens, may also be sprayed within a house, such as inside cupboards, around baseboards, and the like. The desired concentration of insecticide in powder form may vary for garden use, for baseboard use, and for cupboard use. That is, for outdoor or garden purposes, a large spray of powdered insecticide may be desirable. For interior, or baseboard purposes, a medium spray or concentration of the insecticide may be desirable. For the inside of cupboards, a fine spray may be desired.
The apparatus of the '499 patent, while effective, does not allow for the varying of the concentration of the powdered material which emanates from the cap except by manual application. That is, two or three squeezes of the container may be necessary to provide a relatively heavy spray, while one or two squeezes is used to provide a less amount of spray. A further control may be accomplished by the power exerted by the user's hand against the container. However, such manual operations are relatively inaccurate and inconsistent in the dispersal of the powdered insecticide with respect to the amount of concentration thereof.
The apparatus of the present invention provides a movable cap which allows the user to select the quantitative spray desired for various types of application of the insecticide disposed within the container.